Dance music played
out for the hundreds of fans who flocked to the town of
Braintree in eastern England on Friday for the funeral of Keith
Flint, former frontman of the Prodigy.
Face painting and free tattoos were on offer to those who
had come to pay their respects to the "Firestarter" star.
Flint, a figurehead of the 1990s rave movement, was found
dead at his home earlier this month aged 49.
An inquest which opened this month confirmed he had died as
the result of hanging. It has been adjourned until July 23 for a
full hearing.
Renowned for his facial piercings, heavy makeup and
eccentric devil-horned hair cut, Flint played a major role in
establishing the credibility of dance and electronic music.
British singer Keith Flint of techno group "The Prodigy" performs during the first day of the Isle of Wight Festival. Picture: Reuters
The funeral procession followed a 2-1/2-mile path to St
Mary's Church and while the church service itself was reserved
for friends and family, Flint's bandmates had invited fans to
line the route to "raise the roof for Keef!"
Steve Hales was among those who heeded the call.
With dark makeup and a single strip of green hair
reminiscent of Flint’s style, Hales said the amount of support
for him was hardly surprising.
“His was music for generations,” he began, before being
drowned out by motorbikes roaring up and down the streets.
The horse-drawn hearse was decorated by vibrant orange
flowers spelling “Keef” and “Chief”, while his infamous
fluorescent green microphone and an elegant arrangement of white
and red roses adorned the coffin.
Actor Paul Kaye delivered the eulogy, recalling tales from
Flint’s years on the road and his love for motorbikes, animals
and jujitsu, to name but a few of his passions.
"You liked to live your life on the razor's edge for the
buzz," Kaye said on behalf of bandmate Liam Howlett. "You were
an anti-star, a pirate and committed to our cause of shaking
people's souls and buildings."
Fans have launched a petition to have a statue of the late
singer erected in Braintree. According to the petition, which
has amassed almost 9,000 signatures, residents of the town want
"to pay homage and honour its most famous son."
Born in northeast London, Flint moved there in the mid-70s
with his parents and in 1990 co-founded The Prodigy with Howlett
and Leeroy Thornhill.
The group had been due to tour the United States in May and
released their latest album "No Tourists" in November.